Gotta love these days off. I drink coffee at my leisure and get back on track with my gift giving. Bought my older brother two Star Trek figurines still in the package, and also got J a little something as well. Good to catch up with family in the distant city.
Went exploring last night, my friday night, and walked from my work station pretty much all the way home, following the railroad tracks and the rivers that I know of. Taking the short cuts along the streets would be death for sure. The walk home went through crazy busy streets with people and traffic and up one narrow street, through a graveyard, across rivers, through bamboo fields, markets, train stations and deep dark streets that would normally send a boy like me running in fear of murder, death, and the CLOCK OF TIME!!!! Managed to get home and while my legs were spontaneously combusting with redundancy I bought a little something from the grocery store; udon noodles with green onion, tempura yam and shrimp, and some rice, for about four bucks. The distant city is expensive but cheap if you go somewhere at the right time. re: all you can drink.
Finished a song today and titled it `Haiku Blues` which just kicks so much ass that I can`t even believe it came outta my own living room.
Work is work, easy peasy Japaneasy.
Spending the afternoon in Shimokitazawa, possibly one of the world`s best neighbourhoods.
Some idioms I have picked up on:
The east wind blowing through his horse`s ears
A lump above the eye
I am running a little dry on the haiku writing (up to about 200), so I am getting my students to directly translate me idioms and explain, then I can formally write informal haikus based one two translations.
I read eight or nine books in the past month. I wrote over 100 haiku. Got three new songs on the go.
Oh yeah! I forgot to mention that a very cute girl tried picking me up in the 7-11. She laughed at everything I said, but I told her I couldn`t see her because of my Canadian girlfriend. She gave me her phone number but I immediately deleted it off my cell phone. What a good guy I am. What a good guy.
As many of you know, we are moving. I couldn`t be more excited. There is nothing where we live. Empty buildings and houses that you can`t see into. Twisting roads that end with rusty bicyles. There is a nice walk along the river. My younger brother, Joy and I got absolutely wasted along the side of it. The rivers are paved here. After a litre of sochu I crawled up the side of the paved river and fell down about ten feet. Fuckity. My goddamned foot nearly broke right off. I so so drunk though it felt like a massage.
More about the new neighborhood. It`s a ten minute walk from work. Cheap as shit rent, and my commute entails neat little alleyways that appear out of nowhere yet bustle with foot traffic. In the same buliding as my work there is: a bowling alley; a dollar store; a grocery store; a few restaurants; a bar. A minute walk down the street there is a 99 cent food market. Everything a poor boy needs.
Also in the same neighborhood is perhaps the coolest bar I`ve ever set into. The Antique and Junk used to be an antique store, but the owner made shit money so he converted the breadbox sized store into a bar by putting in two tiny tables and a bar with a coupla stools near the back. You can get sashimi there and drink draft beer amidst a but-load of japanese antiques. Frequented by actors, directors, and musicians of repute. Whithin minutes of walking in the bar I was playing Johnny Cash and the bartender and a Korean actor were drumming along, laughing and having a great ol` time. I may have set up a show there and I want to learn a few new songs (wake me up, before you go go) and the like.
Went exploring in Harajuku and Shinjuku. Harajuku sort of trendy but filled with awesome shops and crowded people. Tired of the people I walked down this random alley and came across a full-fledged statue of ELVIS. Behind ELVIS was an ELVIS STORE, named LOVE ME TENDER. You can buy old style elvis jackets, the white one with the black collar and black pockets, and hawaiian style shirts with Elvis faces all over. Elvis mugs, candy, there are some Johnny Cash collectibles, bowling pin clocks and the like. I bought an argyle wrist band and planned on spending some yen there once the yen rolls in.
Shinjuku. Busiest train station in the world. Outside is very metropolitan. Stores that go for miles. Restaurants, bars. A seven storey building will be filled with bars. Skeevy dudes trying to sell `sex massage` (no thanks). Cheap kitchy stores and people. Always people.